


The Real Trouble with Show Business

by EntameWitchLulu



Series: Femslash February 2021 [13]
Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! ARC-V
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/F, Vampires
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-14
Updated: 2021-03-14
Packaged: 2021-03-16 05:55:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29945502
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EntameWitchLulu/pseuds/EntameWitchLulu
Summary: There are, of course, plenty of problems with show business, from terrible directors to awful audiences. The real problem with the entertainment industry, though, is that if you're a little too good, you might just attract some unwanted immortal attention.
Relationships: Hiiragi Yuzu/Grace Tyler
Series: Femslash February 2021 [13]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2139543
Comments: 1
Kudos: 2





	The Real Trouble with Show Business

There was a certain amount of risk involved in joining the entertainment business in Maiami City. Of course there were the usual problems: catty costars, rigged auditions, egotistical directors, overzealous critics, and paparazzi and tabloids with no sense of personal privacy. That was certainly something to keep in mind before you decided you were interested in the limelight.

More than that, though, you had to worry about the vampires.

It wasn’t exactly common knowledge that vampires liked to set down roots in Maiami City, but it was the sort of open secret that the entertainment industry was so good at keeping. After all, immortal beings who’d had time to accumulate some resources were often sending anonymous donations to their favorite theaters and buying out the expensive balcony seats for several years in advance. That kind of financial support simply couldn’t be ignored, and their love for the arts caused most of those in the business to tolerate the knowledge that at least one immortal, blood-drinking creature was likely in the audience at any given show.

But there was, of course, always the risk that you might stand out a little  _ too _ much. That someone might take a little  _ too _ much personal interest in you. This could be good, sometimes — if you were lucky, you’d have a generous patron for likely the rest of your life. Flowers in your dressing room delivered without a signature. Mysterious donations to your bank account after a particularly good show. Letters of recommendation from unknown, but somehow still respected individuals to directors, who would immediately hire you on for practically any role you went out for.

But just like anything, there was always a such thing as  _ too _ much of a good thing. Every now and then, a popular prima donna would simply disappear into thin air. And no one would ever look for them, because everyone already knew. They’d been  _ too _ interesting. They’d been  _ too _ talented.

These were the thoughts that ran through Yuzu’s mind as she tried to breathe with the arm laid casually over her shoulders, as she stared down the gleaming eyed, sharp-toothed monsters who had tried to lure her into the alleyway. She tried to swallow, but her throat was too dry. Her hands shook ever so slightly at her side, and she tried not to look at the too-pale hand that had laid itself against her shoulder.

“Is this rabble bothering you, dear?” the soft voice, cool and melodic, said just near her ear.

She was cold, Yuzu thought. Even through the fabric of her dress, she could feel how cold the woman was. It was hard to breathe. There were no less than three vampires standing in the alley, their red eyes almost glowing in the dark. The tallest of the three had been the one to first call out to her, with that soft, sweet voice that had suddenly made her want to do nothing else except walk straight to him, no matter where it would lead. And she almost had, at least, until the new freezing cold hand had gripped her shoulder and tugged her gently against someone’s cold side.

Yuzu sucked in a thin breath.

“I don’t know,” she whispered. 

Was she being hypnotized, even now? It had felt like a spiderweb, drifting over her mind and sticking to her thoughts, tugging her towards the voice. She didn’t feel that now, but she didn’t know if she was safe. She had no doubt that the woman who held her was a vampire. Was she as dangerous as the three who had tried to drag her in? She never should have found herself here. She should have stopped singing publicly the day she’d first received those mysterious flowers.

“Get your own prey,” one of the three in the alley hissed. “We found her first.”

The fingers on Yuzu’s shoulder tightened.

“Oh, no, I’m afraid you’ll find I struck my claim far before you did,” the sweet, melodious voice said. “Now, I’m going to ask you to leave.”

The words were polite, but the tone was not. There was something actually heavy in the woman’s voice, something that seemed to press Yuzu hard into the ground. Even though the words weren’t directed at her, she was suddenly seized with the thought that she needed to leave, walk away, do exactly as she was told.

The vampires who had taken the brunt of the command, however, took it much harder. Almost all at once, they stood up stock straight like they were dragged on by puppet strings. Burning, angry eyes glowered at the woman, but then, as though they had no other choice, they all turned and fled.

The woman held onto Yuzu a moment longer after the vampires had disappeared. Then she let a soft breath.

“Overzealous,” she said with a sigh. “The young ones get more bold every day. I shall have to learn who their maker is, and have them scolded.”

Her fingers trailed briefly against the side of Yuzu’s neck before slipping off her shoulders, and Yuzu suddenly could breathe again. She gasped in a deep, shuddering breath, stepping back and whipping around to face the woman.

She was taller than Yuzu, slender and pale. Her eyes were not a burning red, though, if Yuzu remembered the rumors correctly, red eyes weren’t normal. They only turned red when the vampire was hungry, so that was a good sign. Her eyes were instead a shiny, almost gem-like peridot in color, too luminous and vibrant to be natural. Smooth silver hair lay in soft strands down her back, startling and nearly glowing against the black of her tailored suit. The suit itself seemed to be several decades out of style, but it seemed to fit her, even if it didn’t fit the scenery. She was so beautiful that it took Yuzu’s breath away — so beautiful that it seemed unnatural.

The woman smiled a slow, sweet smile, but it had the edge of something very old and very powerful, so it made Yuzu tense.

“I...I believe I owe you a thank you,” she said carefully.

“Perhaps,” the woman said, still smiling, unblinking. “But consider it merely a duty owed.”

Yuzu’s lips parted.

“A...duty?” she asked.

The woman nodded.

“I’ve seen all your shows, you know,” the woman said, twirling a strand of her hair around one finger, her eyes still fixed, unblinking, on Yuzu. “I’ve enjoyed your work so very much. It would pain me if I couldn’t listen to your sweet voice anymore. So of course, I had to preserve that.”

Her smile somehow grew even wider, and though Yuzu could not see the fangs behind her lips, her neck started to throb. She swallowed and licked her dry lips.

“Well, I...I thank you, my lady,” she said, bowing cautiously. “It’s...flattering that you would think so.”

“Of course,” the woman said. “I had truly hoped I could introduce myself under better circumstances, of course.”

She tilted her head. She hadn’t blinked even once since Yuzu had first begun to look at her, and it was so eerie that it made Yuzu shiver.

“I’m sure you’re quite startled after that,” the woman said. “Perhaps I could treat you to a meal, to settle yourself.”

Was it her? Was she the mysterious benefactor who had recently taken an interest in Yuzu? The flowers in her dressing room, the donations to her father’s theater when it was on the verge of closing down? Would she hold that over Yuzu? Vampire patrons could be so dangerous.

She took in a startled breath when she realized the woman had reached out and touched her hair. Her cool fingers tangled softly, for a moment, into Yuzu’s pigtails. There was a strange look in the vampire’s eyes. Not...hunger. Not desire. Just...strange. It made Yuzu relax in spite of herself.

The vampire’s fingers drifted away from Yuzu’s hair.

“Perhaps I’m too forward,” she said. “If you’d simply like to return home, I can escort you.”

Yuzu studied the woman’s eyes. They were so very old. So very alien. She bit her lip.

“Are...are you mesmerizing me?” she found herself asking.

The vampire blinked for the first time. Then she smiled a very small, amused smile.

“Would you like me to?” she said in a smooth, easy voice.

It didn’t feel at all like the way the other vampire had tried to steal her mind away from her. They were only talking. Talking, normally. The vampire  _ could _ use her powers on Yuzu...but she wasn’t. She’d come to Yuzu’s rescue.

Vampires were dangerous.

But they were also so very, very beautiful.

Yuzu swallowed.

“I...I might not mind a meal,” she said carefully. “Though I don’t even know your name yet, my lady.”

The woman paused. Then a bright smile broke her lips. She held out her arm, and after a breath, Yuzu took it, allowing the woman to escort her.

“You may call me Grace,” the vampire said. “I am looking forward to getting to know you better, Miss Hiragi.”


End file.
